Increased food banks demand in Harrow – ‘scandalous’

The Trussell Trust which runs food banks in Wealdstone and South Harrow reports a 24 per cent increase in food banks demand in Harrow.
Between April 2018 and March 2019, 2,617 three-day emergency food supplies were given out in Harrow.
The emergency supplies are nutritionally balanced, non-perishable tinned and dried foods that have been donated by people in the local community.
More and more people are struggling to eat because they simply cannot afford food, partly because the current five week wait for Universal Credit is leaving many without enough money to cover the basics. Evidence shows that other changes to the social security system are also major driver of food poverty.
According to the Trust for London, 27 per cent of children in Harrow are living in poverty – that is, the children living in households with incomes below 60 per cent of the median income. Higher levels of poverty are in Edgware, Greenhill, Roxbourne and Wealdstone.
Navin Shah AM, London assembly member for Harrow and Brent, describes the increased demand as “scandalous”.
“Whilst the Government is well aware of the key factors that are driving so many local families into food poverty, they are choosing not to act” he said.
Previously the Trust for London said that Harrow’s progress in addressing poverty is a case of mixed picture.
“In a number of areas it is performing well, especially in relation to some health and educational outcomes, but doing poorly in relation to affordable housing and is least progressive when it comes to council tax and low income families amongst London’s boroughs”.
Economically, London is a wealthy city but that wealth is not shared by all – the richest 10% of London’s households own 50% of the capital’s wealth, the poorest 50% of Londoners own just 5% of the city’s wealth.
What happens in macro, is likely to happen in micro!